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Delhi-based Welspun says it has pinned down 650m rupees ($10.9m) for the project, three-quarters of it debt, from “leading financial institutions”.

Ground works have already commenced at the project, in the southern Karnataka district of Chitradurga, with the developer planning to commission the array “well before” the March 2014 deadline stipulated in its power purchase agreement with Mangalore Electricity Supply Company.

The 7MW project – 1MW of which will be built using a sun-tracker system – represented the highest successful bid in Karnataka’s 2011 PV tender for 80MW of capacity.

Welspun is set to receive 8.50 rupees per kWh produced, in a state with a yawning energy deficit.

Part of the Welspun Group conglomerate, Wellspun Energy has emerged in recent years as India’s leading PV developer in addition to its large wind-energy activities.

It was the largest winner in the most recent tender round within India’s National Solar Mission, and in April commissioned the country’s largest PV array, a 50MW project in Rajasthan.

The month prior Welspun secured financial close for a 125MW PV park under Madhya Pradesh’s state solar policy – with that 8.85bn rupee project slated for commissioning next spring.

Welspun aims to build 750MW of capacity over the next few years, with primary geographic focus on Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The developer has a memorandum of understanding with the latter state government to build 500MW of wind capacity.